Damage
by ironpotato
Summary: Due to some rough circumstances at home in Texas, Dave Strider has found himself knocking on the door of a good pal he hopes he can crash with until he gets back on his feet. But how will he be able to explain the bruises on his face, the scrapes and the cuts? Rated T for language and mildly violent flashbacks.
1. Chapter 1

Why hadn't he come up with a good lie on the way here?

Through the dirty windshield of the shit car he had saved up for months to buy, the blonde sat staring at the house before him with a vacant expression. The clean, white house with its watered green lawn spanning from its doorstep and its lone tree swaying lazily in the mid-July breeze was seemingly beckoning, but he had no idea what to tell the inhabitants. He couldn't just walk in and demand a free stay, and all he had with him anyway was the remaining $4.13 in his jeans pocket. For some reason John's dad didn't like him as he was, and showing up as an unwelcome free-loader was defiantly not going to increase his attitude towards the younger Strider.

Racking his brain for possible excuses, all he could come up with was lame lies that even Egbert could see through, as dense as that boy seemed to be sometimes. ''I was in the neighborhood''? Yeah fucking right. It was only a thirty-four hour drive from Texas to Washington, with the occasional stops for sleeping and stocking up on minute maid and doritos. ''Just wanted to see my pal and now seemed like as any good of time as any.''? That might work, but why would he have come all the way down here without even a warning in advance? John would see that as suspicious pretty quickly. Unless the dark haired teenager had somehow gone completely blind since their last physical interaction six months ago, no lie was going to cut it.

Not only that, but Dave's face would tell its own story that would demand answers. Running a hand through his hair, he quickly flipped down the cracked mirror to look over his broken appearance: the same as the last time he visited except for the purple bruise stretching even beyond the perimeter of his shades, the split lip, a shitty splint he had thrown together for a broken pinky finger, and the assortment of various shades of scratches and bumps concealed by his clothing. There wasn't exactly a great way to hide most of the marks, but admittedly he hadn't tried too hard. He didn't exactly own makeup and he hadn't had enough to buy any.

Having failed to think of anything but tired of sitting around doing nothing, he sighed and reached over the seat to snag the faded red backpack packed lightly with some of his things and his camera bag before pushing through the creaky door and out into the fresh air. "Honey, I'm home." he mumbled to himself, heading up the snow-white driveway and up to the front door.


	2. Chapter 2

_Hey guys! Thank you so much for the positive feedback so far, it's greatly appreciated! I know the first chapter was very short, but it was sort of a test run, you know? I promise I'll try my best to make the next chapters longer,and your continued support motivates me even further! Xoxo_

_In this sort-of AU, Jane is John's sister and they live in the same house with their father. Similarly, you can assume that Dirk is Dave's brother as well as Bro, Roxy and Rose are siblings, etc. _

_John and Dave are 16, Jane is nearly 18._

* * *

_Just knock on the goddamn door. _

Dave had been standing stupidly in front of the house for almost five minutes, his brain racking for what he should even _say. _Like seriously, it wasn't exactly everyday a stunningly handsome Texan dropped by your house in Washington, especially when he was beaten to shit and begging for a place to sleep. (Not that any begging would be happening. He was still a Strider after all, and begging is not something any Strider does ever.) And as he stood there he knew thatif he didn't act quickly someone was going to end up looking out a window or something and find him standing there like a fucking stalker, and that is defiantly not how he wants this first conversation to go.

Maybe he was over-thinking this way out of proportion. John was his pal, his best bro. It wasn't hard to talk to him online, so it didn't make much sense for it to be so difficult in person. Of course, John couldn't see him through a computer screen. Physical interaction was just a _little _bit different than emotionless text.

Whatever. Y_ou know what, I'll just wing it, _he decides after another extended moment in silence, and before he can second-guess this decision, he brings his knuckles to the door and knocks loudly a few times, before retreating a good step-and-a-half and stuffing his hands in his hoodie pocket.

He stands there awkwardly for a couple minutes, and begins to have a hollow feeling that maybe no one is even home. But it is mid-afternoon on a fucking Wednesday in the middle of summer, so there wasn't a logical reason for John _not _being home. He was _always _online so Dave just sort of figured he didn't do anything but hang out in his room all day.

Suddenly a muffled voice called something from inside the house, sounding slightly irritated, and the blond sucked in a breath. _Here we go. _There was audible footsteps approaching, and the knob rattled for half a second before the white door was swung inwardly, and a tall, blue-eyed brunette was standing before the battered Strider.

"Dave?"

John stood there, and Dave could almost _see _the array of emotions running through the other's mind, struggling for words to say on the current situation before him. Confusion, happiness, irritation, and... _concern_.Oh dear god.

"Hey man." The Strider threw a smirk at the shocked teenager, and brought up a hand to salute him. "I was in the neighborhood and needed a place to crash.. for a while." He hoped that didn't sound too dumb. He had a reputation as a cool kid he had to keep up with, after all.

John gave a huff, crossing his arms and throwing an eye-roll in his friend's direction. "In the neighborhood? Dave, you live like two thousand miles away." Taking a step back, Egbert motioned for him to come in, before continuing. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming, man? I mean, I don't really care about you staying, but a heads up to my dad would have been good."

Dave stepped inside, and gave an uncomfortable shrug, his mind blanking for an excuse that wasn't the truth. The truth was too awful and he didn't want to dump that on his friend as soon as he got here. "I uh, -"

"Jooooooooohn!" Somewhere else in the house, a feminine voice screeched in annoyance. Turning to look at a paling John, Dave gave a smirk and silently rejoiced that the conversation had been interrupted so abruptly. Maybe someone was looking out for him.

Sheepishly, John shot a look and a toothy smile at Dave before hollering back. "What do you want, Jane?"

"Who's at the door?"

"It's Dave!"

There was no verbal response. Instead, fast footsteps could be heard rushing on the floor above, and then Jane was standing at the top of the stairs, her face disbelieving but not angry, like Dave had assumed she would be. "Why the heck are you here?"

"Oh my, thank you for the warm welcoming, Jane." Dave replied easily, dramatically bringing his hands to his heart.

"And why do you look like shit?" She shot back, making her way down the steps as she tucked a loose strand of curled black hair behind her ear.

She was one to directly question the elephant in the room, Dave would give her that.

"Yeah, I was wondering that too." John was clearly annoyed with his sister barging into the room, but he brought his attention back to Dave, curiosity and quiet distress glowing in his eyes. Well, shit. How was he supposed to flat out lie about a black eye and a broken finger? Maybe he should just-

"I, got into a fight. Nothing major, you know, but I kicked his ass. It was an intense battle displaying strength and courageousness, and of course I was deemed victorious." That was.. almost the truth. Okay, not really, but good enough for now.

At least John laughed at that, clearly disbelieving but not going to push it any further, and even Jane cracked a smile.

"Oh I'm sure he probably almost _died. _I know _I_ wouldn't want to fight against a one-hundred and ten pound destruction machine like you, Dave." Jane continued, her hands waving in dramatic sweeps and her face feigning fear.

"Hey, I'm at one-twenty now, I'll have you know."

"Is that so?"

"Yes obviously. I mean my arm muscles are just rippling."

"Oh my god you two, shut up." John sighed loudly, smacking Dave's shoulder and flashing a grin. "We should go find a place to throw your stuff and maybe scope out some extra blankets for you to sleep on." John was already heading towards the stairs, passing Jane who stood there smugly.

Kicking off his shoes, and tightening a grip around his backpack strap, Dave nodded in agreement. "Lead the way, good man."

* * *

_Not entirely thrilled with this chapter but I hope it was okay? This is the first fanfic I've ever done so I hope it is turning out decent! Any feedback, tips, etc. is greatly appreciated! xoxo my lovelies_


	3. Chapter 3

_Hello~! Thank you all so much for the feedback! I got a comment that Jane wasn't completely in character, and I completely agree. Alpha kids are just not my strength though, so I apologize! I'll try to do better! I presume writing gets better the more you do so, and this is only my first fanfiction, so it won't be fantastic. But the general attention this is getting makes me so happy! Thanks! xoxo_

* * *

"Okay man, seriously, I am so hungry I could eat like ten cakes." Dave was sprawled on John's floor, staring at the ceiling while John fiddled idly with his computer. The Strider had been there for a couple hours now, hanging out in Egbert's room while they talked about what had been up recently and Dave commented and mocked the various items and posters scattered around. Seriously, John had the worst interests. And after about half an hour they had silently realized they actually didn't have too much to talk about, as Dave avoided a few subjects and they still talked online frequently.

John turned to look at him, a disgusted look lingering in his features. "I am so sick of cake. It's cake all day, everyday. Jane makes it too, so there is just _so much cake, _Dave. So much."

Dave laughed, before sitting up and covering up a wince as his muscles screamed in protest. He was still mildly sore from the incident a mere few days ago, and sitting in a car for hours on end didn't exactly help stretch him out either.

John didn't seem to notice, his gaze now returned to the computer screen.

"What are you doing anyway?" Dave asked, pulling his knees inward and crossing his arms overtop them. John seemed to have a short attention span too.

"I'm talking to Jade. She's wondering why you haven't been online for a few days so I told her you came here. She wants to know why but I don't know what to tell her because you haven't even told _me _yet."

Dave shrugged, uncomfortable again. Turning again to face him, John frowned. Shit. "I just, I needed to get out of town for a while." He offered, shooting a look at the other. John was still frowning, obviously concerned about the circumstances that would cause Dave to flee across the country. But he didn't say anything more, and after a quiet, awkward moment the front door could be heard opening.

"That must be my dad." John commented, the silence gone and no hints of any emotion but his typical goofy joy in his voice. "We should probably go inform him that you are here. It would be weird if we just walked down for supper and my friend from Texas just happened to be joining us. And staying for.. how long did you say?"

Dave shrugged again, running a hand through his hair. "I don't know. A couple days at least?"

John nodded, standing up from his computer chair and arching his back in a stretch. "Alright. Not a problem! It will be fun having you around."

The Strider smirked, before standing up as well as John started towards the door. Before he moved though, he started to peel off his sweatshirt, no longer cold and starting to get slightly irritated by the uncomfortable heat that seemed to be John's house. Suddenly he remembered the other marks.

The deep bruises, scrapes, and the admittedly long cut trailing from his elbow almost down to his wrist. It wasn't alarmingly deep but it still didn't look pretty.

Paling slightly as he looked down at the array of colors that was littering his weirdly white skin, he heard an intake of breath and glanced over in John's direction. The brunette was staring at him, his eyebrows furrowed. Shit. "'Kicked his ass', huh? Dave, what the fuck happened?"

"It's nothing man," The blond stated lamely, turning away to throw his sweatshirt into his backpack. Oh dear god this had gone badly really fast. He just wanted some damn food.

"That is not nothing! You look like you got sent through a paper shredder." John was walking towards him now, and before Dave could react the other teenager was gripping his arm and staring down at the marks with fury and deepening concern that Dave couldn't stand.

Pulling his limb away in lash irritation, the blond took a step away, his arms crossing loosely and laying across his chest. "It's _nothing. _I told you, I.. got in a fight."

"Yeah, no shit. I want to know _why. _You can't tell me that cut isn't a blade mark. Were you sword fighting with one of your brothers or something? They shouldn't be beating on you that bad-"

"My bro's didn't do anything, Egbert. And even if they did, they wouldn't punch me or anything like that. You have to have some respect in sword fighting dude."

"So _who did this?_"

Dave didn't respond right away, his head facing John but his eyes behind his shades staring at the ceiling. He hadn't wanted to have this conversation today. He knew John would keep pushing and pushing until he got answers and Dave hadn't wanted to answer to them today. But understanding this wasn't going to just go his way, he sighed almost silently before letting his arms drop to his sides.

Time to spill his entirety of secrets.

"John, I'm not cool in my town. No one thinks I'm a cool kid, no one even _likes _me. In fact, no one likes me to the point that I don't have _any _friend's besides you, Rose, and Jade. And I don't even get to see you three on a daily basis. So it should not come to a surprise to you with this new information, that I am bullied. I am literally the shit pole of my entire grade." Dave paused, taking in John's expression of near horror before continuing.

"Almost four days ago, despite it being _summer vacation, _I was practically _jumped _by a few guys who think they are the Tom Brady's of our generation. They beat the shit out of me, one pulled a blade, and then-"

John waited expectantly, his face grave and making Dave uncomfortable. John wasn't supposed to look like that. John shouldn't be hearing this shit awful news that Dave was not the cool person he knew him to be and was actually the laughing stock of an entire school.

Running a hand through his already ruffled hair, Dave sucked in a breath.

"They threatened to kill me."

* * *

_I hope that didn't seem too rushed. Anyway, thanks for reading! I'm estimating another chapter either tomorrow or Sunday!_


	4. Chapter 4

Hey guys.. sorry for the long wait! I've been going through some nasty stuff; been struggling with some bad thoughts, self harm, and well, updates are slow when I can't think straight. So I apologize! I don't like this fanfiction much in its entirety, but it has a few fans so I will keep it going as best I can! xoxo

* * *

John's shoulders tensed and he ducked his head, hiding his eyes. "They said what?" His voice was deceptively calm and even, and it worried the blond.

Dave turned away and strode around the room, his vision swimming. "They fucking told me they were-, they said they would kill me. They said they'd fucking cut me open, and leave me bleeding in an ally somewhere." he mumbled hoarsely.

The brunette was visibly trembling but his voice remained steady as he finally looked up at his friend. "Why didn't you fucking tell your brother? Why did you come all the way here? You could have, you could have told someone, the police, anyone!" He was beyond confused, dazed, trying to process the information that his best friend had jocks out to kill him while attempting to stay level headed and think through this realistically.

Dave kicked over a chair, his fists clenched. "What good would that do? Telling the police? They'd still find a way. My bro? He's not even fucking around half the time! Even if I got a restraining order against a few of them, they have friends! I'm not safe and I know damn well that I can't defend myself properly against them when they come at me four to one!"

Dave had escaped and he'd done the only thing he could think of; he'd ran away like a little wimp. He drove as far as he could and made it to a safe place and now he wasn't sure where to go from there. Sure, he'd left his siblings a note. Explaining things vaguely; where he was going, what he had on him, what they were _not _to do.

"I can't-, I can't handle that kind of stress. Knowing that there are people out to get me.. and I won't know when or where. I couldn't walk home from school without fear. I can't live in constant fear, it would destroy me, even if they don't go through with anything serious." The Strider's voice was low and weak, and he hated showing this pathetic side of himself, best friend or not.

John hesitated a moment, his hand resting on his wall as his gaze flicked between a crumbling Dave and the floor. He straightened up after a moment and rubbed absentmindedly at his eyes, taking a step towards his distressed friend. At his approach, Dave turned away, his eyes behind his shades glued to the floor and his shoulders hunched.

"Dave, I-" he started, unsure where exactly he had been going with his words.

"Can we just, stop talking about this, please?" Dave's voice was near whisper and gruff. He cleared his throat before continuing,"I need to relax for a couple days. I need.. I need this time to think things through."

John was nodding before the other even finished speaking, and he slapped a hand half-heartedly on Dave's shoulder, trying not to acknowledge the reflexive flinch he received. "Yeah, sure thing man. Let's just, let's go downstairs. I'll think of something to tell my dad."

Dave didn't respond for a moment, and instead pulled the dark-tinted glasses off his face, rubbing at his eyes and turning to stare at John through a few loose locks of premium hair. John's own eyes widened slightly at the stunning shade of his friend's irises, before he remembered the few vague reasons he had received on why Dave even wore the sunglasses constantly. Something about.. weird eyes.

Dave smirked slightly at John's reaction, the stricken features melting into his typical near-emotionless ones as he slipped his eye wear back into place. "Don't gawk, it makes me self-conscious." he said innocently, and John gave a short snort of laughter and smacked his arm.

"Whatever dude, let's go get something to eat." He huffed, turning on his heel and heading towards the door. Dave followed him after retrieving his sweatshirt, a genuine smile creeping onto his face. The smile felt unfamiliar and awkward, but he was satisfied nonetheless.

He really didn't deserve such a good friend.


End file.
